Volume 128 Issue 112
kansan.com
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
COMMENTARY Diallo's decision getting closer
Ben Felderstein
@Ben Felderstein
No. 7 recruit Cheick Diallo has narrowed his college decision list down to five schools: Kansas, St. Johns, Iowa State, Kentucky, and Pitt. 247 sports. com gives the Jayhawks a $34% chance to Land Diallo.
NAM Y. HUH/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Diallo posted a tweet Monday night that read, "It's been a long 3 years. Just wanted to thank all the coaches who recruited me and stopped by my school ... appreciated all the fans who followed my journey."
This tweet has experts speculating that Diallo will make his decision soon. Diallo has impressed scouts since he was awarded MVP of the McDonald's All-American game.
Diallo is 6-foot-9 but has a wingspan that measures 7-foot-3. The power forward weighs in at 210 pounds and will become a better defender as he adds muscle. Diallo is a menace on the offensive boards and possesses strong ball skills for a big man.
According to scouthoops. com, Diallo has a competitive drive that will likely make him one of the hardest workers on any team he chooses. He also has the ability to score on the low-block with advanced footwork.
While Diallo has a strong skill set, he is still a raw product with a lot of sharp edges. Diallo shot a mere 58 percent from the free-throw line during his senior season and has relied on his physical prowess through most of his young basketball career. If Diallo is to become an eventual NBA prospect, he is going to need to develop a stronger and more consistent inside scoring game.
Similarly to former Jayhawk Joel Embiid, Diallo picked up basketball late in his life and adjusted to the game very quickly. Embiid climbed the recruiting charts all the way to the No. 6 spot before committing to Kansas.
Embidid's quick adjustments accelerated even quicker at Kansas as he cemented himself as one of the best big men in the country during his freshman season and eventually became the No. 3 overall draft pick.
Diallo is being projected as a two-year player, but Embiid's one-and-done success was not anticipated, so an impressive freshman season is not out of the picture for Diallo.
Diallo will help fill the void that is being left by former Jayhawk Cliff Alexander who has declared for the NBA Draft. Diallo will also look to join a class that, so far, only includes Carlton Bragg. Kansas has had top recruiting classes in each of the past two seasons.
— Edited by Garrett Long
Senior shortstop Justin Protocio throws the ball early in the game against Wichita State on Tuesday night. The Jayhawks defeated the Shockers 11-6.
Jayhawks sweep the Shockers, win 11-6
ANNA WENNER/KANSAN
KYLAN WHITMER
@KRWhitmer
Kansas baseball earned their second sweep of the season Tuesday night after defeating Wichita State 11-6, also giving them their second victory against the Shockers this year. Tuesday's win gives the jayhawks their sixth straight victory against the Shockers.
"It's an in-state rivalry and it has been forever, so it's good to get the win," said senior Dakota Smith.
The Jayhawks wasted no time in putting runs on the board, scoring within their first two at-bats of the game. Senior Justin Protacio singled to left field to leadoff the inning, and Connor McKay followed with an RBI double to put the Jayhawks up 1-0.
Wichita State's Gunnar Troutwine was a one-man show in the top of the second inning for the Shockers. The freshman walked to leadoff the inning, and followed it by stealing second base.
After the Shockers recorded their second out, Troutwine advanced to third on a balk, and on the very next throw, scored on a wild pitch to tie the game at 1-1.
Pitching would - plague the Jayhawks in the next inning. The Shockers' Trey Vickers reached base due to a fielding error and soon after found himself on third after a wild pitch. Vickers scored on a routine groundball by teammate Daniel Kihle to take the lead.
In the bottom of the third, the Jayhawks got two runners on base in McKay and Blair Beck. With two outs on the board, Smith ripped a shot over left field, but it passed just outside of the foul pole. On the next pitch, Smith learned from his mistake and launched a home run over left center to give the Jayhawks a 4-2 lead.
McKay started things off with a single up the middle in the bottom of the fourth, giving him his third hit in
three at bats. Freshman Matt McLaughlin took the batter's box in the at-bat following McKay, and mimicked his teammate Beck by hitting a home run of his own over left-center.
McLaughlin's home run is not only the first of his career, but according to him, it is his first ever at Hoglund Ballpark including batting practice.
The Jayhawks' scoring barrage continued in the fifth. After the Shockers failed to get anything going on their end, the Jayhawks loaded the bases against Wichita State's Taylor Goshen, who walked another batter to bring in a Jayhawk run, giving them the lead 7-2.
Goshen was replaced by freshman Tyler Jones, who started his night with a wild pitch. Kansas junior Tommy Mirabelli turned on the jets to take advantage of the wild pitch and reach home to put his team up by six after five innings.
After five straight innings
with no hits, Wichita State's Jordan Ferris finally got the Shocker bats going in the top of the sixth with a base hit. Following Ferris' at-bat, teammate Ryan Tinkham earned the Shockers their second hit of the game with a line drive to right field. In their third at-bat of the inning, the Shockers recorded their third hit of the contest after clean-up batter Sam Hillard sent a ball over dead center to cut the deficit to 8-5.
The Jayhawks would take advantage of three walks and a hit batter in the bottom of the inning to walk in a run of their own, giving them a 9-5 lead through six.
The Shockers tried to spark a comeback in the eighth, and they cut the lead to three after a throwing error plated a runner, but the Jayhawks were not impressed. In the bottom of the inning, the Jayhawks' Owen Taylor and Tommy Mirabelli hit back-to-backRBIs to take a five run advantage.
The Jayhawks' lead would hold through the ninth as the Shockers could not get anything going, giving Kansas an 11-6 victory and a season sweep over the Shockers.
Coach Ritch Price's squad was dominant on offense during the game, showing a team effort with eight players contributing to the teams 11 total hits.
"I thought they did a good job," Price said. "It's a shocking thing to say but hard to hit when they're walking that many guys. They went to their bullpen a lot to try and mix and match but our guys did a good job overall of taking the runs."
With the Wichita State game in the books, the Jayhawks complete their 10-game homestand and will continue Big 12 play on the road at West Virginia on Friday.
- Edited by Victoria Kirk
FACE OF THE STREAK
Wavne Simien vs. Joel Embiid
FG%: 56
RPG: 8.3
PPG: 15
WAYNE SIMIEN
Wayne Simien earned Big 12 player of the year his senior year, as well as being named a consensus All-American. His teams at Kansas won three conference championships and went to the NCAA Tournament every year, including two appearances in the Final Four. Simien finished his career 13th all-time on the University's scoring list with 1,593 points. Simien averaged 20.3 PPG and 11.0 RPG his senior year.
- First Team All-American in 2004-05
- Ranked 1st in the Big 12 in points per game in 2004-05
JOEL EMBIID
Joel Embiid came to Kansas from the Rock School in Florida after growing up in Cameroon. He only started playing basketball at the age of 16. In one lone year playing in Allen Fieldhouse during the 2013-2014 season, he was named a Naismith finalist. In last June's draft, he was selected third overall by the Philadelphia 76ers.
FG%: 63
RPG: 8.1
PPG: 11.2
- Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2013-14
- Ranked second in the Big 12 in blocks per game in 2013-14
Brandon Schneider introduced as new coach
DYLAN SHERWOOD
@dmantheman2011
When Brandon Schneider, the new Kansas women's basketball coach, was first introduced on Tuesday, he talked about his first visit to Allen Fieldhouse in 1995, while being a first-year coach under Cindy Stein at Emporia State University.
"Before I stepped on the court, I could feel it, the goosebumps," Schneider said. "There's something special about this place. The last 20 years, there have been two words I've been wanting to say and I decide to wait one day until I became a part of the KU family."
The next two words Schneider said were "Rock Chalk".
Schneider was named the sixth woman's basketball
coach in program history on Monday. It happened to be the same date Schneider was hired in 2010 at Stephen F. Austin after he left Emporia State following the National Championship Division-II win.
"We are going to play extremely hard," Schneider said. "We are going to be the team jumping over the scorer's table, diving on the floor for loose balls and rotating to take charges."
"We found the coach who checked all the boxes off our list," KU Athletic Director Sheahon Zenger said. "A coach that has spent his career in Kansas and Texas, who can identify and recruit talent in the Big 12 corridor."
Schneider wants his team to
Schneider expects big things out of his team in the near future.
play physically and mentally. He also wants there to be a strong sense of unity between the team and the coaching staff.
"We are going to be the team jumping over the scorer's table, diving on the floor for loose balls and rotating to take charges."
BRANDON SCHNEIDER Women's basketball coach
He believes that togetherness between the team and coaching staff can bring toughness, and a team that can accomplish this can
"We are going to be a team that promotes unity and communication," Schneider said.
One thing Schneider does in his coaching positions is turn the team around. In his first season at Stephen F. Austin, the Jackrabbits won 12 games, and the next season, they won 23. During the past two seasons, Kansas won 13 games during the 2013-14 season, and 15 games this past season. He considers himself a basketball junkie.
Relationships are key for Schneider, and his teams have been successful in the past. Schneider is the second-winning coach at the NCAA Division II level, and he ranks in the top 10 in fastest coaches to 100 wins and the third fastest among women's coaches.
win a high percentage of games.
"I did get a check from Paramount Studios being a basketball extra" Schneier
Brandon Schneider
said. "When you are a basketball junkie, there's no other place you want to be"
The future is looking up for Kansas Women's Basketball, and with Schneider at the helm, you can see Kansas make a turnaround just like that.
Edited by Victoria Kirk
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